Nanny Business
by OriginalSharkBiteGal
Summary: Portley-Rind hires Winnie a new nanny, much to her surprise. Winnie wants nothing to do with this woman and finds a way to lose her. Now the nanny is on the hunt for her, with the help of some of Cheesebridge's other residents to help.
1. Chapter 1

Cheesebridge had become a much more accepting town after realizing the Boxtrolls were indeed not monsters. Everything seemed to be looking up for everyone. One concerned parent however was worried about his child. Lord Portley-Rind never payed much attention to his one and only daughter Winifred, but after the events in town and realizing how much he neglected her, he now switched into an almost overprotective mode. He would watch as Winnie went out and played with the Boxtrolls and her friend Eggs and thought about how unsafe the streets of Cheesebridge really were.

Pondering the problem and a way to solve it, he decided that the best thing to do was to hire a nanny to watch over his darling daughter. That way while he was busy with his business and his wife was busy with her social life, Winnie would still be safe and under careful supervision.

He knocked on his daughters door one morning as she lay sleeping in her bed. "Winifred, are you up, dear?" he asked quietly as he poked his head into her room.

The young girl rubbed her eyes as she sat up in bed. She stretched her arms and yawned before answering, "I am now. Morning father!" She smiled, thinking about how great things had been since her father payed more attention to her. All she ever wanted was for her dad to notice her, and now that he finally did everything seemed perfect, and she hoped it would stay that way forever.

As the Lord saw his daughter up in her bed all bright eyed and bushy tailed as usual, he stepped inside placing his hands behind his back and beginning to almost rock on his heels anxiously. "I have some very exciting news for you, my little angel!" Winnie leaned forward ready to listen. Her father cleared his throat before starting, "I have been thinking about how things have changed these last few months, and as your father I am always concerned for your well-being. Seeing you out and about all over town playing around with those Boxtrolls and that Egg boy, I get very worried. They are rather… Rough."

Winnie rolled her eyes, but still kept a smile on her face. The only downside to her father noticing her now was that he became a bit protective. He saw her as his fragile, proper, little lady. He didn't like the idea of her playing in the dirt and throwing bugs around or possibly eating them. As many times as she tried to assure him that it was fine, he was still skeptical.

"So that is why I have hired a nanny to look after you!" Portley-Rind gestured to the door and in marched a very small woman with dark brown hair wrapped up into a thick bun. Her outfit looked more like a maid than a nanny, and the uniform seemed as if it was one size too big for her. She had a very stern look on her face, as if she was annoyed with everything and everyone around her. She nodded her head towards Winnie as if to say hello.

Winnie's face fell instantly. This happened so suddenly and without warning, she wasn't sure what to say or do. Her first instinct was too be angry. She quickly stood up on her bed and announced her feelings, "I don't need a nanny!" Her hands were balled into little fists at her side as she stood her ground and stared daggers at the woman before her. The lady seemed unfazed.

"Oh, but you do, darling! When your mother and I aren't around to watch you, the nanny here will make sure you stay safe and out of harms way. Isn't that right, Ms…" he trailed, forgetting her name.

The lady refrained from rolling her eyes at her new boss as she finished, "Pepper, sir."

"Yes, yes, of course." he said as he patted her back. The lady's eyes shot open, surprised by the contact. He pushed her forward a bit as he slipped past her and back out the door. "You two aquatint yourselves, I must be off. Important town business to discuss in the tasting room today. Good day, ladies!" He shut the door behind him, and both Winnie and Pepper rolled their eyes.

Winnie hopped off the bed and approached the new nanny. She stood only under a foot shorter than the grown woman. "I don't need a nanny. I'm nearly twelve years old! I can take care of myself, thank you!" she turned away from the woman and crossed her arms, sticking her nose in the air.

Ms. Pepper was not very keen on the idea of being a nanny. It was either this or prostitution, and she was starting to wonder if she had chosen the wrong career. "Look, I don't want to really be here either, so why don't you be a good little girl and get dressed, brush your teeth, and i'll whip you up a nice breakfast. Alright?" her tone seemed condescending as she stood over Winnie with an incredibly fake and sarcastic smile on her face.

None of this went over the young girl's head, she was smart; Smarter than most of the adults in Cheesebridge anyway. She did what she was told though, and tried to think of a way out of it whilst Pepper wasn't around.

After she was dressed she made her way down to the dining room and sat at the head of the table. Not even a moment later Ms. Pepper brought in her breakfast: a cheese omelet with strawberries and blueberries on the side. "Eat up." she said as she set it on the table. The girl began eating as her new nanny stood beside her staring at the wall.

Winnie thought for a moment, then sighed. "Do you really want to follow me around all day? I don't even do anything that spectacular. My days are pretty boring actually." she lied. Every day was an adventure when she was with Eggs and the Boxtrolls, but with all this nanny business in the way she could lose out on all the great opportunities.

"Your father told me to watch over you and make sure you don't get into trouble. If you do I am to bring you straight back home, and I get my paycheck."

Winnie huffed and sunk in her chair. This lady was tough, no wonder her father chose her for the position. Another idea then popped into her head, and she sat back up and finished her meal. "Alright, I'm full! Now how about we go out for a nice walk." she stood up quickly and began making her way to the front door of the house. Pepper shrugged and followed the girl closely.

As they stepped out and down the steps of the Portley-Rind mansion, they were quickly swept into the busy marketplace of Cheesebridge. Winnie payed close attention to make sure Pepper was still behind her. She was, and she was not struggling as bad as she expected. Being so small she could maneuver through a crowd pretty well.

Winnie searched the crowd for someone to talk to, to distract Ms. Pepper, but who? Then she spotted the perfect specimen. "Ms. Monte Cristo!" she waved her arms to get the tall woman's attention.

A lady with big, golden hair and a fancy dress turned at the sound of her name being called. She looked around for a moment then found Winifred approaching her. "Ah, Ms. Portley-Rind! How are you today?" Compared to both Winnie and Pepper, this woman was an oak tree. A very tall and busty woman with bright green eyes and a smile that was as bright as the sun. She seemed like Pepper's opposite in every way.

"I'm fine, thank you. I wanted to introduce you to my new nanny, Ms. Pepper." Winnie introduced. Pepper examined the woman before her, and was disgusted by her cheeriness. "Ms. Pepper, this is Madame Molly Monte Cristo." Winnie finished as she rocked on her heels waiting for her plan to fall into place.

Molly extended a hand to shake and Pepper hesitantly extended her own. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Pepper. Are you new to town?"

The smaller woman pulled her hand away quickly and remarked, "Unfortunately." Molly laughed at her joke, unaware that she was being completely serious. Pepper rubbed her hands together as if wiping off any germs the lady left on her.

"Well then you'll have plenty of new things to see while you are escorting Winnie around-"

"Oh, i've seen enough." Pepper murmured under her breath.

Molly continued as if she didn't even hear Pepper's comment, "My personal favorite spot in town is the abandoned factory down on Curd's Way, but that's just me."

Pepper's face contorted as she listened to this woman go on. "Abandoned factory? That's not at all skeptical for a woman of your class." Suddenly she noticed that Winnie was missing. She mentally slapped herself for getting distracted on the job. She turned around quickly looking through the crowd to find her, but she wasn't in sight.

Molly continued rambling, not even noticing Pepper wasn't paying attention. "Yes, well I only really like it for the people living there. The former Red Hats, and the man of my dreams."

The nanny turned back around to the annoying woman sharply. "Madame, did you by any chance see where Ms. Portley-Rind went?" she asked urgently. Just her luck, fresh on the job and she was already about to lose it.

Ms. Monte Cristo snapped out of her own thoughts and back to Ms. Pepper. "Oh, she was right here a minute ago." she put one hand on her hip and the other on her chin as she scanned around for the young girl.

Pepper groaned; As much as she hated this demon child, her stuck-up father, and this whole stinky town she needed this job. The last thing she wanted was to go back home to her snooty older sister, her boring brother-in-law, and their bratty kids. "So _nice_ chatting with you m'am, but I must go find Winifred." sarcasm dripped on the word 'nice.'

She began walking away from Molly but the tall woman stuck by her side. "Let me help you!" she insisted, beginning to look over heads of the people in the marketplace. She was taller than even most of the men in town and could easily see over all the heads of the people in the marketplace.

Pepper stopped in her tracks immediately and shook her hands, "Oh, no, no, no, no! This is my job and I can do this on my own." She knew she couldn't really do it alone, but the thought of spending another minute with that woman was unbearable.

"No, I insist! Besides you're new, and I know all of the places Winnie and her friends usually play, as well as every other nook and cranny they could possibly be. I grew up here, you know?" Molly straightened her back proudly knowing she could be of help in this time of need.

Pepper was having none of it though. "Don't you have something better to do? I'm sure an upper class lady such as yourself wouldn't be up for running around town all day and possibly dirtying up your five hundred dollar shoes." she didn't even try to seem serious or nice in any way; It was nothing but stone cold sarcasm from the short lady.

The blonde had a look of shock on her face. Here she thought she had just made a new friend and she was already treating her like the ditzy, rich, bimbo everyone else assumed she was. Her face scrunched up as she towered over Pepper and gave her a piece of her mind, "See here, you don't know anything about me! You don't know anything about this town or Ms. Winifred for that matter! I could let you go off and search for her and watch as you have no luck whatsoever and i'll be sipping my merlot wine and laughing because you insisted in such a rude tone that you did not need my help!"

Pepper backed up step by step as the woman went on, "But because i'm such a nice person I _will_ help you, whether you like it or not! Now come along, I know just where to look!" she quickly turned on her heels and made her way towards Milk Street. Pepper was a bit flabbergasted by the outburst, but followed close behind her, muttering under her breath.

"Oh, and by the way," Molly finished, "they're not five hundred dollar shoes, their three hundred."


	2. Chapter 2

The two ladies exited the busy marketplace and walked through the town. Pepper followed behind Molly, unsure of where they were going. As if she had read her mind, Molly began, "We're going to go see Herbert Trubshaw. His boy Eggs is Winnie's best friend. If anyone will know where she is, he will!" Pepper wondered how someone would name their child after a breakfast food, but ignored it as they approached a small hair salon.

"Hair Do Well?" Pepper read the sign aloud, "Is this Trubshaw man a barber or something?" she asked.

Molly shook her head, "No, but he usually hangs around here with Hamilton. Chances are he's not here, but Hamilton can at least tell us where he lives so we could find him."

They entered the shop; Inside there was a red barbers chair on a worn checkered floor in front of a mirror on the left wall. Under the mirror there was a table coming off the wall like a shelf, with scattered brushes, combs, hair products, scissors, and hair razors all over it. Across the room was another chair that was much more simple and a sink for washing hair. Shelves lined the back wall of the building, and a curtain hung in a doorway, assuming to lead to some kind of a back room.

From behind the curtain, a man emerged dramatically with his arms in the air. "Molly! You're not due here till the first Monday of next month, what can I do you for?" He was just between Pepper and Molly's height and had light brown hair long enough to tie back into a ponytail. He had an even longer beard that was so big he had it wrapped around his neck like a scarf and a mustache under his long nose. He wore a blue and white striped shirt and red pants with gold and green stripes on either side.

The man strutted towards the two and instantly started picking at Pepper's hair. "Yeesh, more like what can I do _you_ for, turtledove. Your hair is a wreck when's the last time you washed it?" he criticized as he pulled a twig out of her bun and tossed it aside.

Pepper whacked his hand away and took a step back. "Mind your business!" she said as she patted her bun, making sure he hadn't loosened it up.

Molly stepped between the two, "Hamilton, this is Ms. Pepper. She's Winnie Portley-Rind's new nanny." She placed a hand on Pepper's shoulder, but it was shaken off immediately. The tall woman was offended and pouted at the action.

The man scoffed and put his hands on his hips, "If she's her new nanny then where's the bloomin' kid?" His sass was immense.

Pepper stomped her foot and threw her hands onto her hips aggressively. She didn't even want to talk to this man if he was going to act this way. She grabbed Molly's arm and tugged her down low enough so she could whisper in her ear, "Are you sure we need _his_ help to find the Trubshaw man?"

Hamilton interrupted, "Whatcha looking for him for? You should be looking for the kid!" He held back a smirk, enjoying getting on the small lady's nerves. Pepper was ready to roast him when Molly cut in, "If we find Herbert we can find Eggs, and if we find Eggs we can find Winifred."

Pepper wanted to leave this shop and never step foot in it again. Hamilton was on her last nerves, and she had very few left. "How do we know Herbert even knows where his carton of eggs is?" she half joked about his son's odd name.

Hamilton took a step towards the woman, "Because unlike SOME people, Herbert knows where his kid is!" He stood over her a moment taking in her shocked expression, then quickly turned on his heel away from her and back to the other side of Molly, purposefully whipping his long beard in her face.

Pepper let out a small yelp as the hair whacked her on the cheek. "That's it! I'm going outside!" she shouted as she stomped out the front door to wait on the sidewalk.

"Hamilton!" Molly scolded, giving him a whack on the arm, "That's no way to treat someone you just met!" He flinched as her hand made contact. He rubbed his arm and retorted, "Some people are just so touchy…" The lady rolled her eyes at his insensitivity. "Wow, Blondielocks you really do pack a wallop." he commented.

"Could you please just tell us where Herbert is." Molly begged. She was used to Hamilton's rude banter, but she didn't like it when he threw it at unexpected participants. Especially since Pepper was her new friend, she didn't want to give her any bad impressions.

Hamilton shrugged as he made his way towards the back of his shop, "How should I know? I'm not his nanny." Molly rolled her eyes. "If you really want to find him he lives on 793 Guernsey Lane." he finally spewed out something useful.

The lady glowed and ran to her friend for a hug. "Thank you, Hammy!"

He tried his best to untangled himself from her clutches, "Yeah, yeah, whatever! Come on, I just ironed this shirt!" he successfully pushed her off. They bid their goodbyes and she rejoined Pepper outside.

Pepper waited out on the street for Molly to come back with the information they needed. As she leaned against the wall of 'Hair Do Well' she thought about what would happen if she didn't find Winnie. She had to have her back before dinner at five thirty this evening. If she returned to the mansion without the girl, or if Winnie returned without her, she would lose her job for sure.

It was obvious to Pepper that Winnie had planned this all out in her head this morning. It was a clever plan, and she might actually succeed and get Pepper fired. With what time she had, Pepper was determined to find this demon child. The last thing she wanted was to return back to her hometown Knightingdale. She would have to confront her sister, and listen to all the nasty "I told you so" line over and over again.

She shook the very thought out of her mind. No matter how stinky this town was and no matter how annoying the people were she wanted to prove that she could handle having a job and doing things on her own.

"Ms. Pepper!" Molly tapped her new friend on the shoulder. Surprised, the nanny jumped and gave a shriek. "Didn't mean to scare you!" the blonde couldn't help but giggle.

Embarrassed, Pepper patted down her hair and fixed her dress, "S-Scared? No, not me. Not in the slightest." She found her way back to her calm and disinterested demeanor. "So, did you find out where this Herbert man is?"

Molly nodded, "He lives just a mile away down on Guernsey Lane. Come along!" She began walking ahead of Pepper, leading the way.

A mile down Curds Way and a right turn onto Guernsey Lane they approached the home of Herbert Trubshaw. Rather than a usual button doorbell there was a rope that hung down just beside the door. The rope lead up the wall and through a window on the second floor.

The two girls looked at each other and shrugged. Molly gave the rope a tug and inside they could hear wheels and gears turning as if someone was winding up a giant music box. A moment passed and the noises halted. They gave each other another look of uncertainty, and then a simple 'ding-dong' rang just like any other house.

"Pfft, well that was dramatic." Pepper placed one hand on her hip, unamused by the fuss.

"DOOOOOOOOOORRS OPEN!" they heard a shout from inside. Hesitantly, they turned the knob and stepped inside. The house looked like an organized mess of papers and notebooks piled on every surface. The brick mantle had books stacked haphazardly beside multiple framed family photos of a man, a woman, and a small baby. The only places clear of clutter were the couch and the chairs around it in the living room.

"DID ANYONE COME INSIDE? I'M IN THE BACK IF YOU DID! PLEASE DONT ROB MY HOUSE!" they head another shout from around the corner. They made their way into the kitchen which was just as messy as the rest of the house, but less with papers and more with dishes, and found their way out a back door and into a lone alley. The narrow alley was congested with a large car parked just a few feet away from the door. Tools were spread all over the cobblestone making it seem even more crowded outside. The tall brick walls dividing the houses were covered in chalk writings of equations, drawings, and random little notes.

Molly stepped down the two stairs into the alley and lifted her skirt as she carefully stepped over wrenches and screwdrivers. "Mr. Trubshaw?" she looked around for the man. She could have sworn she heard his voice coming from back here.

"Down here!" he announced as he slid out from under the car on a wooden creeper. He had slicked back brown hair with a few grey stripes coming in and a matching beard and mustache that was neatly trimmed. His suit looked dirty and covered in oil, as did much of his face. Nonetheless he had a warm, welcoming smile on his face as he saw the ladies. "Why, Ms. Monte Cristo! Haven't seen you in ages! How've you been?" He grabbed a cloth nearby and wiped the oil and dirt off his face and coat.

She put out a hand to help the man up and he took it graciously, "I'm quite alright, thank you. How about yourself?" she replied.

He rised to his feet and patted the side of his car, "Well i'm alright, but this ol' thing needs a good tune up. Been spillin oil like nobodies business! People started complaining so I gotta fix'er up." He then spotted Pepper still standing by the back door. "Who's this?" he asked, excited to meet a new neighbor.

Molly gestured for Pepper to come down the steps and into the conversation. She paused a moment, and with a sigh she did so and stood next to her tall friend. Molly put her hand on Pepper's shoulder again. Rather than shake it off this time, she simply raised her shoulders in surprise, but let the hand stay, much to her discomfort. "This is Ms. Pepper, Winnie's new nanny." Molly introduced.

Herbert took the small lady's hand and gave it a good shake. "Pleasure to meet you! Didn't think Winnie really needed a nanny though. She's about the same age as my boy."

"Yes, well-" Pepper began to explain, but was interrupted by the man.

"You ever met my boy, Eggs? He's a hoot! Sure you'd love him, everyone does!" he kept on rambling. Pepper tried many times to cut in but it seemed impossible. Molly watched her try and try again, with no luck, and finally made the initiative herself.

"HERBERT!" she shouted loudly, finally getting him to shut it. She cleared her throat, "Speaking of Eggs, do you know where he is?"

The man tapped his chin as he thought a moment, then shrugged, "No idea. Probably with the Boxtrolls though. He'll be back here for dinner though, if you'd like to wait around for him."

Pepper sighed, desperate for help, "No, no! It'll be too late then! We need to find them now!"

Herbert felt terrible for having nothing helpful to give them. "Wish I could help you ladies. If you need anything, i'll be here." He patted the side of his car again, and he began to crouch back down onto his creeper. The girls bid their thank you's and goodbye's then made their way back to Guernsey Lane.

Pepper sat on the curb of the sidewalk in front of Trubshaw's house and thought aloud, "Great, just great. I'm screwed! We're at a dead end: I can't find the kid, I have to have her home by dinner time and it's already two in the afternoon, and it's only the first day!" She put her head in her hands as she sulked, trying to rethink her plans as she waited to get fired.

Molly slowly slumped as she listened to her pal. She hated seeing people like this. After spending all this time with Ms. Pepper, she felt close to her; She considered her a good friend, and she had to cheer her up. "Hey, don't give up yet. We've still got time." she paused, but there was no response. "Ms. Pepper?" she asked, bending down and placing a sympathetic hand on her shoulder.

Pepper quickly and aggressively shook her hand off and stood up. "Stop touching me! I can't stand it when you touch me!"

Caught off guard, Molly was shocked. She slowly stood back up to her full height. "I'm just trying to help." she attempted, but Pepper was pissed. She was tipped off the edge with the shoulder touching, and now the canon was loose. "I don't need your help! I don't need anyone's help! The whole point of this job was to prove i could do things on my own!" she yelled. She turned away from the woman once again.

Molly crossed her arms and sternly commented back, "If you can do things on your own then why am I here?"

She turned on her heel fiercely and broke, "Because I _can't_ do this on my own!" she was breathing heavily, and she felt light headed. She turned away from Molly one last time to hide the shame stricken on her face.

Seeing Pepper's vulnerability made Molly's face fall completely. Seeing someone strong break was an incredibly sad sight to see. She went to place a hand on her shoulder but hesitated and instead kept it to herself. She paused before speaking, "You know it's not too late. Winnie's out there still, somewhere." Another pause and suddenly a brilliant idea came to her. "I know someone else who might be able to help us out! Come along!" Molly began marching down the road leaving Pepper in the dust.

Pepper looked at where she was headed and hesitated before following. "Ugh, what else do I have to lose?" She rolled her eyes and caught up with Molly.


	3. Chapter 3

Molly knocked ten times on the door of the Red Hat factory. Pepper stood beside her unsure of where they were. Suddenly the door slid open to reveal a tall, gangly, bald man wearing a burgundy suit and a teal scarf. He had crooked teeth and a long nose. Pepper couldn't help but wrinkle her nose at the sight of him.

He straightened up and brushed his hands off on his coat, as if it would help him look better in some way, "Oh! Ms. Molly, so glad to see you. I knew it was you at the door!" He gave her a big toothy grin, not even noticing Ms. Pepper beside her.

Molly put her hands behind her back and smiled, "Oh really?" She began swaying back and forth in a flirtatious manner. Pepper watched in confusion.

The tall man nodded, "Yes, you always knock ten times." he paused, "Also you're the only person who visits us." His face fell, but quickly perked back up, forgetting the thought.

Molly giggled and continued making goo-goo eyes with him, until Pepper elbowed her in the ribs. "Ah! Oh, yes, this is my friend Ms. Pepper. Pepper, this is my very dear, close friend, Mr. Pickles."

Mr. Pickles nodded his head down at her, "It's a pleasure to meet you!" he extended a hand to shake. Pepper was about to take it when she noticed how filthy and bandaged his hands were and quickly backed away a step. "Charmed." she said sarcastically.

He slowly pulled his hand back to his side, confused with the whole situation. "Alright then… Won't you ladies come in?" he stepped aside, gesturing for them to enter. They did so, and Pepper was the least bit surprised that the building was basically a replica of what the man she just met looked like: Filthy, tall, and unpleasant to look at. It was messy like the Trubshaw's house, but in less of a homey way. It was more dirty and obviously only men lived there.

To the left of the door was a wooden table where a large man was sitting on a stool playing an accordion. "Hello!" he greeted with a shy smile to the ladies.

Molly waved to him, "Good day, Mr. Trout. This is my new friend, Ms. Pepper." Pepper waved, praying this man was nothing like the tall one.

"What can we do you for, ladies?" Pickles tried to act smooth by leaning one hand on the table. It wobbled for a moment until Mr. Trout rolled his eyes and rested his elbow on the table to balance the weight.

Molly took a step towards Mr. Pickles, "Well, Pepper here is Winifred Portley-Rind's nanny, you see, and we can't find her anywhere because she ran away because she hates Ms. Pepper."

"Gee Thanks…" Pepper mumbled.

"Herbert told us that she and Eggs were probably with the Boxtrolls today, but he wasn't sure exactly where. I thought since you men were such great Boxtroll hunters back in the day you could help us find them, or at least find one and maybe they could tell us where Winnie is!" Moly finished.

Pickles and Trout were frozen, unsure how to process the information. Pickles cleared his throat and tugged at his scarf. "You lost me at Winifred's nanny…" Mr. Trout spoke up, Pickles nodding in agreement.

"We need you to help us find some boxtrolls." Pepper stated bluntly, crossing her arms.

The two men gave each other nervous glances. Pickles fiddled with his fingers, "Well, uh, you see we don't actually- Uh, we- we're kinda rusty in the Boxtroll catching department."

Molly took another step closer towards him, "Oh, I just figured that you knew all their hiding places and where they go around town."

Pickles raised a finger a pointed out, "Things have changed now though, they got different spots now, and-"

"But you're a smart man, and we don't have many options left!" she took his hand in both of hers and batted her big green eyes. "Will you help us? Please, Monty?"

Flustered by all the touching, eyelash batting, and sweet talking, Mr. Pickles gave in, "A-Alright then. Anything for you, Ms. Molly." A big goofy grin was stuck on his face as Molly jumped up and down and thanked him. "Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" She then wrapped her arms around him in a big bear hug. He was shocked, but not at all angry with the gesture. He took in every moment of it he could.

Pepper shuddered in disgust at the gushy display. She looked over to Mr. Trout who seemed equally disgusted with it all. At least she wasn't the only one. "Are they like this all the time?" she asked him. He nodded, "Unfortunately."

Molly released her hug and was ready to hit the road. "Come on then, we've not a moment to lose!"

Mr. Pickles was still in a daze. He stumbled on his feet for a moment, before turning to Mr. Trout, "Are you coming with us?"

The man shook his head, "I'm busy." He lifted his accordion as his example. Honestly he didn't want to go because he didn't want to deal with Molly and Pickles' nonsense. He was working on a new song however, and that was much more important.

"Alright then, shall we?" Pickles extended his arm for Molly to take. She giggled and took it without hesitation. Pepper groaned as she followed behind them. Before leaving she looked back at Mr. Trout. "Good luck." he waved. It was both in regards to her search for Winnie and having to deal with the two lovebirds. She frowned, realizing this was quite possibly the worst day of her life.

Mr. Pickles marched them all around town to all the alleys and hiding places he and the Red Hats used to track Boxtrolls to. They used to have a map back the factory that had all the locations marked in red. They didn't have it anymore considering they didn't need it, but now it would have been helpful. Luckily he had it engraved in his brain pretty good; He remembered all the important places anyway.

An hour later and it seemed like they were still making no progress. Not a single Boxtroll was anywhere to be seen in town, which was unusual considering they come out all the time nowadays. Mr. Pickles scratched his noggin and thought aloud, "Don't make no sense. We haven't seen a single one anywhere. Where could they all be?" Molly hung onto his arm, much to his surprise. "I don't know, but we better hurry it up, we've only got an hour before Winnie needs to be home." She walked over to Ms. Pepper who was rubbing her templed away from the group. "Do you have any ideas, Ms. Pepper?"

She shrugged, "Don't look at me, I don't even know what a Boxtroll looks like."

"They're small and they wear little boxes." Pickles informed her.

She rolled eyes and snapped, "Ah, yes, so helpful. Thank you, Mr. Pickles. You have been nothing but helpful today!"

The man stood up straight and tall and smiled. "Oh, you're welcome!" he replied. Pepper groaned, "I was being sarcastic!"

"Oh… Alright then." he slumped his shoulders, rethinking what Pepper said. Molly sighed, hating seeing this all unfold, "Stop this, come on! We just have to keep trying, they're around here somewhere."

Pepper faced Molly holding up her hands in defense mode, "No! You're wrong! There are no troll creatures and i'm not going to find Winnie in time!" she sighed, and continued her eyes on the cobblestone. "I'm tired of running around on this goose chase… I'm just going to go back to the house and tell Portley-Rind what happened. Maybe i'll get lucky. Probably not, but…" she trailed. One last sigh of failure, and she dragged her feet along the sidewalk as she left the two alone in the alley and made her way back up to the top of Cheesebridge.

As she walked along, she heard something shuffling in a trash can nearby. She stopped and watched it shake and rumble. Suddenly a creature popped out of the top victoriously holding up a rusty, bent trowel in it's grubby little hands. The creature was a pasty grey-blue color with pointed ears and wore a square box. She gasped as she watched the small troll jump out of the garbage and run along the street.

She quickly picked up her skirt and chased after it, "Wait! You there! Stop! I need to ask you something!" The boxtroll didn't seem to notice her chasing it as it continued around corners and through different alleyways. It eventually tucked into a sewer entrance, leaving the round, barred door ajar. Pepper stopped, out of breath as she stared into the dark sewer She hesitated and then began to crawl inside.

The deeper she crawled into the sewer the smellier and darker it got. She held her nose as she crawled with one hand. It was tough to do though, her dress kept getting caught on sticky things and loose bricks. She was stuck in one particular brick really good, and she had to use two hands to pull it out. She gave a tug, but nothing happened; One more tug, still stuck. One last big tug, and it came loose and sent her falling backwards. She expected to land on the bricks, but instead kept tumbling down, as if the tunnel had ended and she never even noticed. She rolled down the sewer and ended up slipping and sliding down what seemed to be dirt. She screamed as she slid out of control down into a deep hole and onto a makeshift conveyor belt. She finally landed face first in the dust.

She sat up and coughed, spitting the dirt out of her mouth. Her head spun as she looked around her surroundings. It was like a book, like she just fell down the rabbit hole into Wonderland. Only this wonderland was a cave full of mechanics and a lettuce garden, with more of those Boxtroll creatures of all shapes and sizes staring at her from afar.

As she recomposed herself, she noticed a small table where Winnie, a brunette boy, and two boxtrolls were sitting and sipping tea. Her eyes narrowed on Winnie, "YOU!" She stood up and brushed herself off.

Winnie gasped, teacup still in hand, "How did you find me?!"

Pepper waved her hand at the girl, "That's not important, what's important is that I did it! I found you and now you are to come straight home with me!"

Winnie put down her cup and stood up in defense, "But Ms. Pepper-"

"When I tell your father about this-" Pepper interrupted.

"You can't!" The girl pleaded.

"I must! Tis' my job." She crossed her arms and stuck up her nose; Her mind was made up. Something pulled at her skirt, and she noticed the little creature she chased down there looking up at her with its big eyes. She stepped back in hesitation, the boxtroll shrinking into its box a bit. It poked its head back out and its ears perked up. He tried speaking to her in his boxtrollese. "Wh-What are they doing?" She looked to Winnie for help.

"They like you!" the boy spoke up with a smile. He stood beside Winnie and laughed. The young girl's face grew a small smile as she watched the display.

Pepper was unsure what to do, "Shoo! Shoo!" she said as she waved her arms at it. The boxtroll mocked her movements. "Ahh, why is it doing that?"

The boy clarified, "That's his name, Shoe!"

Pepper looked up and into the distance. "How ironic." Shoe pulled out the trowel from his box and held it out for her. The lady hesitantly took the rusty thing, "Oh, uh… Thank you." Shoe then proceeded to nuzzle against her and purr much like a cat. She slowly knelt down, put the trowel in her apron pocket, and put her hand on his head. She noticed more of the Boxtrolls gravitating towards her. Another one wearing a million spectacles took her free hand and put it on its bare head. She couldn't help but smile at the creatures, and mumble to herself, "Lord Portley-Rind is worried about you hanging around with these kittens?"

The boy nudged Winnie forward. She sighed and approached Pepper. She sat beside her in the middle of the boxtroll group. A small one with a small funnel on its head sat in her lap. She hugged it softly and spoke to her nanny, "All I ever wanted was for my father to stop neglecting me. Now all I want is for him to stop suffocating me. If you tell him what I did today, he'll never let me see Eggs or the Boxtrolls ever again."

Pepper took a moment to think it over. There was no way Portley-Rind would ever reconsider things. He was a white hat politician after all. She finally figured it out, and began, "You remind me of myself when I was your age; Bossy, irrational, and very clever. Only you had good friends that cared about you." she paused, then continued in a more stern tone, "Alright, I won't tell your father what happened today, and it better not happen again. I'll let you hang out with your little friends and keep your secret safe. They're clearly no danger to you." she looked at all the boxtrolls around her, Shoe still cozy beside her. She smiled, "As long as i'm your nanny you are in safe hands, Ms. Portley-Rind."

Winnie sprouted up, "Oh thank you, Ms. Pepper!" She gave her a big hug. Pepper was shocked, but returned the affection. All the boxtrolls patted their boxes and slowly started joining. Even the boy piled onto the hug.

"Alright, you're all crushing me with your cardboard bodies, hop off!" Pepper stood up and everyone fell off. She dusted herself off once again and fixed her hair.

Winnie took her friends hand and pulled him towards her nanny. "Ms. Pepper, this is my friend, Eggs." the boy waved to her with a warm smile on his face.

"Ah, you're the infamous Egg boy." Pepper felt relief finally having a face to match to the name. The boy wrinkled his brow in confusion. "Nevermind," Pepper waved her hands, "Come along Winifred, we got to get you home for dinner." The girl nodded, and waved goodbye to her friends. The boxtrolls all waved goodbye to Pepper, they were very happy to have met her.


End file.
